ERIC Number: EJ730600
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Jul
Pages: 3
Abstractor: Author
Reference Count: 0
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0278-2626
The Eyes Have It! An fMRI Investigation
Kingstone, Alan; Tipper, Christine; Ristic, Jelena; Ngan, Elton
Brain and Cognition, v55 n2 p269-271 Jul 2004
For the past several years it has been thought that cues, such as eye direction, can trigger reflexive shifts in attention because of their biological relevance and their specialized neural architecture. However, very recently, Ristic, Friesen, and Kingstone (2002) reported that other stimuli, such as arrows, trigger reflexive shifts in attention in a manner that is behaviourally identical to those triggered by eyes. Nevertheless these authors speculated that reflexive orienting to gaze direction may be subserved by a neural system-the superior temporal sulcus (STS)-that is specialized for processing eyes. The present study presents fMRI data that provide direct and compelling empirical support to this proposal. Subjects were presented with fixation stimuli that, based on instruction, could be perceived as eyes or as another type of directional cue. Both produced equivalent shifts in reflexive attention, replicating Ristic et al. However, the neural systems subserving the two forms of orienting were not equivalent-with the STS being engaged exceptionally when the fixation stimulus was perceived as eyes.
Descriptors: Cues, Human Body, Motor Reactions, Attention, Visual Stimuli, Investigations, Brain, Psychological Studies
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: N/A

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